Outside the School, Thursday Morning, Before Ethics

[raspberryturk]

Reno was completely casual as he waited around outside the school building, hoping to catch a certain someone before class to ask a certain question.

Totally casual, and not at all antsy, with handwavily acquired tickets in his pocket.

Yep. Standing. Outside. And waiting. He might have gotten there extra-early, just to be sure he didn't miss her.

He wasn't at all nervous. Shut up.

[He's waiting to grab one person in particular, thanks!]

Comments

[raspberryturk]

Reno took a deep breath. Right. Of course. Not the end of the world, here. Unless the prom theme came alive and tried to kill them all. Ooh, Skeletons!

"I got the tickets because I wanted to go with you," he said. "Never really... did the datin' thing before." Ever. "But I can call Friday night a date, yo."

He was going to blow it. And she was going to think it sucked. And whose bright idea was dating, anyhow? He'd kill the person who invented it.

"Will you go on a date with me Friday evening? I got tickets to the prom."

Wow. That sounded so... normal high-school teenager, or something. Weird.

[the_merriest]

Rikku looked off to the side for a long minute.

"We can just meet up there. I didn't mean this to be a ... look, you don't want to be dating, we don't have to be. We didn't say we were ..."

Back together? Exactly? Uh.

She lifted a shoulder. "It's good."

[raspberryturk]

Reno grimaced a little, shaking his head.

"No, it ain't that. I'm more-" Deep breath. Wow. This was going to sound stupid. "I ain't never been on a date, okay? I'm worried I'm gonna do somethin' stupid like, shit, I dunno, wear a flower in my lapel that don't match your dress, or not hold open a door when I'm supposed to, or-"

He shrugged.

"Shit, Rikku, I don't even really know what dating is."

[the_merriest]

Deep breaths. Those were good. She needed one herself. Okay.

"Dark red would match my dress. I can open my own doors. You come to my room, you bring me a corsage -- they have them in town, ask somebody -- you tell me I look nice and you walk me to the dance. I'm not grading you on it. I don't stop the date and stomp off if you forget anything. Which would be hard, because, again: you come to my room, say something nice, and walk me to the dance. Skip the corsage if that's a huge deal, I'm not gonna give a damn. This isn't hard. But if this is too much effort when you can just meet me there and take me home and get laid anyway ..."

[raspberryturk]

Reno had to stop, and take another deep breath, and shut his eyes, and inform himself that he was a moron.

Okay. Informed.

"What time should I pick you up?"

... He was fond of the 'get laid anyway' plan. But he had bought the tickets with 'date' in mind anyhow, dammit. So they were going to go on a freakin' date, dammit.

[the_merriest]

"I don't know," she said irritably. "You're the one with the tickets, it probably says when it starts on there. And where they're having it. Add in enough time to walk there in heels."

She exhaled, loudly. "The date thing was a joke, Reno. I was trying to ask if you were going with me, or if you just picked me up a ticket for the hell of it. Because you kinda didn't say, either way, and ... I didn't realize the word 'date' still gave you hives."

'Girlfriend' was probably off-limits again, then. Fun.

[raspberryturk]

Well.

This was going swimmingly.

He pulled out a ticket and held it out toward her.

"I want to go with you to prom on Friday night. You, me. Us. Prom. I'll pick you up and get you a corsage and all that other stuff too, zoto. You in, or not?"

He was going to mess it up, and it was going to be a grand freaking disaster, and then maybe the ceiling could fall on him and -- dating. Reno had no freaking clue what he was doing.

[the_merriest]

"You ... it's okay if you just ..." Rikku took a deep breath, and looked at him, and the ticket, and him again, and ...

"Us?" she asked, hesitantly.

Are we 'us'?

[raspberryturk]

He licked his lips and nodded slightly.

"Us. I want to go with you to prom. As us. I miss... Us."

[the_merriest]

"I do too," she said quickly. "I'm not saying that I'm ... I don't want to go, hey, back the way it used to be like this never happened. I can't. But ... I ... miss Us, too."

[raspberryturk]

"Nono, I wouldn't want you to just... I mean. It happened. Lots happened. And I can't take it back, and you got every right to. Uh. To hate it or whatever."

Oh boy.

"But, I mean... Even if all you can stand of 'us' is one night, I'd take it."

[the_merriest]

"I think I can stand a little more than that," she said softly. "I ... want to be ... us again. I'm just gonna need, you know. Time to sort it all out. But ... we can be ... us while I'm doing that, right?"

[raspberryturk]

"Right." Reno smiled a little. "So... Us, then? And I can pick you up on Friday, and... Really?"

He smiled a little more.

[the_merriest]

"Friday," she said, with a quick nod. "And ... really."

That had to be followed with a light peck. Just a short one.

"C'mon, dork. We've got a final to take."

[raspberryturk]

"We got a final to take," he agreed, giving her hand a little squeeze.

Maybe he'd even let go of it when they got to the classroom.